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| John James Audubon by John Syme 1826 oil on canvas 90.2 x 69.8 cm The White House, Washington, DC |
John James Audubon (1785 - 1851) is perhaps the most renowned wildlife artist in America, universally acknowledged by both art and natural history museums. He was born in 1875 in Les Cayes, Santo Domingo (now Haiti).
From his father's Pennsylvania estate, Audubon made the first bird-ringing experiments. After failing in various business ventures, he concentrated on drawing and studying birds, which took him from Florida to Labrador. His extraordinary four-volume The Birds of America, first published in London in 1827, was a 12-year enterprise that exponentially increased the knowledge of American ornithological and natural history.
Subsequently, Audubon embarked on a companion project for mammals, The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America.
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| Arctic Hare c1841 pen and black ink and graphite with watercolour and oil paint on paper 61 x 86.9 cm National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC |
This project occupied him from 1830 until his death in 1851. Of the approximately 150 artworks undertaken for this project, nearly half were completed by his son, John Woodhouse Audubon (1812 - 1862).
The images featured in this series are mainly hand-coloured etchings and aquatints, with a few original watercolours here and there. (You can click on individual images to enlarge them).
This is part 1 of a 7-part series on Audubon's Birds of America:
(Click on the images for a larger version showing more detail) |
| American Avocet |
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| American Bittern |
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| American Coot |
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| American Crossbill |
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| American Crow |
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| American Flamingo |
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| American Golden Crested Wren |
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| American Goldfinch |
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| American Magpie |
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| American Pie-billed Dobchick ( Dabchick ) |
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| American Ptarmigan and White-tailed Grous ( Grouse ) |
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| American Redstart |
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| American Robin |
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| American Scoter Duck |
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| American Snipe watercolour original |
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| American Snipe |
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| American Sparrow Hawk |
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| American Water Ouzel |
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| American White Pelican |
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| American Widgeon |
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| American Woodcock |
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| Anhinga original watercolour |
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| Anhinga |
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| Anhinga original watercolour |
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| Arkansaw Siskin, Mealy Red-poll, Louisiana Tanager, Townsend's Finch and Buff-breasted Finch |
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| Audubon's Warbler, Hermit Warbler and Black-throated Gray Warbler |
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| Autumnal Warbler |
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| Baltimore Oriole |
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| Band-tailed Pigeon |
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| Bank Swallow and Violet-green Swallow |
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| Barn Owl |
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| Barn Swallow |
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| Barnacle Goose |
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| Barred Owl |
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| Bartram Sandpiper |
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| Bay-breasted Warbler |
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| Belted Kingfisher |
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| Bemaculated Duck |
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| Bewick's Wren |
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| Bird of Washington |
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| Black & White Creeper |
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| Black & Yellow Warblers |
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| Black Backed Gull |
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| Black Guillemot |
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